Vegan Travel: Vegan at Disneyland

Last month, Chris and I surprised the twins with a day at Disneyland to celebrate their last day of school and their upcoming thirteenth birthday (Yes. We have teenage twins on our hands. How did this happen?). We told them we were going to “another hippie vegan convention” at the Anaheim convention center so when we walked up to the ticket booth, they were surprised to say the least.

Our first order of business was Space Mountain which the twins had never been on and Chris hadn’t been on probably since the time he was arrested at Disneyland. We got fast passes for Star Tours then got in line for Space Mountain. The wait was long and by the time we got off, we were a little hungry. I had done a little research prior to coming and learned that the plain (with or without salt) Mickey Mouse soft pretzels (not the cheese-filled ones) were vegan so we stopped at the first pretzel stand we found. Having a snack like soft pretzels definitely made us feel even more in the mood for amusement park fun so we high-tailed it to Fronteirland.

After Pirates of the Carribean and The Haunted Mansion, it was after noon and we were hungry for lunch. We checked out this great stand in Adventureland that had fresh fruit, juices, and even hummus and pretzel packages, but we were hungry for an actual meal.

Chris and I grabbed vegan gumbo in a bread bowl (just ask for no oyster crackers) in New Orleans Square (right near Pirates of the Carribean. They can be found at the Royal Street Veranda- There’s a big sign that says “Gumbo”- you can’t miss it) and then carried our bread bowls to Fantasy Land to get some lunch for the twins.

We got the twins veggie burgers and fries at Village Haus in Fantasyland. They both liked the burgers but loved the fries. Chris and I tried the burgers and it was pretty tasty for amusement park food.

Our gumbo bowls, on the other hand, were absolutely incredible. I would go back again just for these bowls (Well, only if it was my birthday and the admission to the park was free). It was packed with rice, onion, okra and tomatoes and the sourdough bread bowl was super fresh. I couldn’t get enough.

After lunch, we were all in the mood for a little something sweet. Lucky for us, we happened upon a cart that was selling kettlecorn and due to prior research, I had learned that the prepackaged kettlecorn was vegan! The twins shared one bag and Chris and I shared another.

We rode a few more rides and then made our way to California Adventure. We did some serious screaming at the Tower of Terror and then on California Screamin’ (we actually went on this one twice!). After that the twins wanted to go on a ferris wheel ride so we let them go on that while we hunted down a Starbucks (at the entrance to California Adventure) so Chris could get a coffee with soy milk (finding coffee with soy milk is not easy at Disneyland so thank goodness for Starbucks!). We met up with the twins again, did some more walking around until the twins told us they were tired and wanted to go home (just for the record: the teenagers tired out before we did!).

We had such a fantastic time and a large part of it was not having to worry about where to eat. Because of the research I did prior to our visit, I had found a ton of other vegan options throughout both parks. For more information on being vegan at Disneyland, you should visit Cadry’s Kitchen and The Very New Vegan.

Have you eaten as a vegan at Disneyland? Tell us about it!

Just a side note: Although we had a fantastic time, there were a few things that made ma little sad. Disneyland is not the happiest place on earth for animals (and not just the dead ones that were being served as “food”.) There were ducks in the ponds that could not fly (their wings had likely been clipped in order to keep them in the park) and were forced to spend their days in a loud park surrounded by thousands of people. I’m sure this is a far more stressful environment for them than the quiet lake or pond they would normally be living. We also saw a horse, who had been pulling a carriage (on a track), completely freak out. It was “neighing” and jumping up. The handler couldn’t even approach him. He just had to keep patrons away while this animal attempted to run away. It even tried to kick its back legs up but kept kicking the carriage itself. The horse was so scared and unhappy- it truly broke my heart to see. Disney, if you’re reading this, I’m sure it’s possible to run your park without the exploitation of animals.

36 Responses to "Vegan Travel: Vegan at Disneyland"

that soft pretzel looks SO GOOD. i miss soft pretzels so much.. especially since philly soft pretzels were basically a food group for the first 20 years of my life. all the other eats look great as well!

your note made me so sad i could cry ;( one of the main reasons dayv and i nixed going to disney world this year is because i refuse to go to animal kingdom. we had requested the disney info dvd and when the segment on the animal kindgom started, i immediately started to cry and had dayv turn it off immediately.Caitlin recently posted…Pesto Pizza

Looks like you had fun! I have never been to Disney, but I hope to run the marathon there someday! Also, good for you for addressing the animal issue; I’m sure it’s overlooked by many.Suzanne recently posted…“Big Haas” Vegan Chocolate Avocado Muffins

Disney is one of my favorite places to visit – even without kids! I’ve never been there since becoming vegan, but I’m so glad to know I won’t be stuck eating only french fries the next time I go. Thank you for sharing!Kelly @ Vegan Iowan recently posted…Arugula-Basil Ravioli from Scratch

I just returned from Disney World in Florida and was shocked to find an incredible array of vegan options. We ate at two buffets, Boma and Tusker House, and at both restaurants I told our server that I was vegan and a chef came out from the kitchen and walked me through the buffet and went over which dishes were vegan. Tusker House had Tofutti ice cream in the back, which was great after a really hot day. At Boma, the chef immediately asked me if I was ok with honey. I thought, “alright, this guy knows his stuff.” He made me a vegan bowl of soup, which was delicious, because all of their soups were not vegan. He also brought out some special salads and papadum because almost all of their breads were not vegan. For dessert, he brought me some vegan chocolate chip and sugar cookies and Babycakes mini cupcakes! We also ate at Jiko and they had a separate vegan menu with lots of options for all courses. Lunch was a bit more difficult in terms of finding nearby options at a time when I was hot and exhausted but I was still able to make it work because falafel was always nearby! I am really impressed with Disney and was so happy to find all of these options.Chamsalife recently posted…One is enough?

I am going on vacation to Disney World in August, hopefully the vegan options are just as delicious and available as they were in Disneyland! I will have to check out the other blogs for ideas as well. Thanks for this post Kristy.

I didn’t know Disney had all those veg options. That’s really nice! And I can’t believe you have twin teenagers – you’re looking pretty awesome for a mom of 13 yr olds!

Also, somebody recently told me that disney allows ferrel cats into their parks at night as “pest management.” They were getting cats in all the time b/c they’d eat the food off the ground, so they decided to feed the cats real food at night and their presence has kept mice and stuff at bay. Supposedly. Tho that horse story sounded really sad!Maria Tadic recently posted…Lazy Days Pasta Recipe

Well, the last time I went to Disneyland I was a vegetarian and was only at CA Adventure. I was a super broke college student and couldn’t afford much! I also remember struggling to find anything for lunch (it could have also been that I was the only veg in the group).

Are you based in OC?? I would love to meet you someday when I come home for a visit!

Also, another random question, are your twins vegan? Or do they just eat that way when they’re with you? Just curious as I would like to have kids someday! 🙂Stephanie recently posted…Crispy Oven Baked Zucchini Fries

I’m in LA (near Venice/Marina del Rey) but I would LOVE to meet you the next time you’re out here! Let me know when you’re coming and I’ll be there! 🙂

The twins are vegan on the weekends when they’re with us. Sophia is vegetarian during the week, but Max is omnivore. They’ve both mentioned that they would like to be vegan but their mom is not a big fan of the idea so it makes it a little hard. I’m sure it would be much easier if they were raised vegan from birth. At least they’ll be well-informed when they’re old enough to decide for themselves. 🙂

I wish all of the vegan hippie conventions would have Space Mountain and hot Mickey Mouse-shaped pretzels… Can we talk to the organizers about that possibility? 😉 Speaking of Space Mountain, what did the kids think of it? That’s one of my top three favorite rides at the park (along with Indiana Jones & the Haunted Mansion). Were you able to hit Soarin’ Over California at California Adventure? That’s my favorite ride at that park.

Good pick on the gumbo bowls! Plus, how often do you get to eat soup in a bread bowl?

Thanks for the blog mention! So sweet of you!

That’s really sad about the horse. I totally agree that Disney parks are no place for non-human animals. Every year the turkey who is “pardoned” gets sent to Disneyland, and Farm Sanctuary always requests that she is sent there instead. So far, no luck. The turkeys don’t live for long at the park, as they are not set up to adequately handle their health and welfare needs. Plus, they go from one stressful life to another.

We all loved Space Mountain! It was Chris’s favorite when he was younger and it was actually only my 2nd time on it. The kids loved it too. We’d all been on the Soarin’ over California ride before, just at different times. Chris and I wanted to go again this time but the twins weren’t into it. 🙂

I didn’t know that about the turkeys. That’s awful. Why on Earth would they set a turkey free in Disneyland? There’s no point. I know we wouldn’t visit Animal Kingdom either.

Thank YOU for sharing all about your visits- it definitely made our trip easier. 🙂

I have never been to Disney Land or World, what a fun place (with the exception of the mentioned animals) the theme parks in our area are animal free but not very vegan friendly when it comes to food choices. What a great family filled day you had, happy birthday to the twins!Heather recently posted…charred rainbow beet & pistachio salad

I’m planning a trip to Disneyland with my family and I was worried that I’d have to drag my family around for an hour just to find something for me to eat! Thanks for the post now I know exactly where to go!

Awesome post! Thanks for the tips 🙂 just FYI I am at Disneyland today and went to get the gumbo. They told me it’s not vegan because it’s made with lard and also the bread bowls are made with butter 🙁 so disappointed cause it sounded amaze!

It did have a sweetener in it, though I can’t recall what was used. I’m concerned about bone char sugar as well, but when I researched, several sources cited the kettle-corn as being on the list of confirmed vegan items.